idle
adjective
1. not in action or at work
- an idle laborer
- idle drifters
- the idle rich
Similar word(s): faineant, indolent, lazy, otiose, slothful, lackadaisical, leisured, unengaged, ineffective, ineffectual, uneffective, unemployed
2. without a basis in reason or fact
- idle fears
Similar word(s): unsupported, baseless, groundless, unfounded, unwarranted, wild
3. not in active use
- the machinery sat idle during the strike
- idle hands
Similar word(s): inactive, unused
4. silly or trivial
- idle pleasure
- light idle chatter
Similar word(s): frivolous, frothy, light
5. lacking a sense of restraint or responsibility
- idle talk
Similar word(s): irresponsible, loose
6. not yielding a return
- idle funds
Similar word(s): unprofitable, dead
7. not having a job
- idle carpenters
Similar word(s): unemployed, jobless
Sentences with idle as an adjective:
- idle hours; My computer hibernates after it has been idle for 30 minutes.
- idle workmen
- an idle fellow
- an idle story; idle talk; idle rumor
noun
1. the state of an engine or other mechanism that is idling
- the car engine was running at idle